“The Women’s Rabbinic Network (WRN) is a constituent group of the Central Conference of American Rabbis (CCAR). It was created in 1975 by a group of female rabbinic students to provide the support and advocacy needed in the early years of women in the Reform rabbinate. Since then, the organization has grown to include over [click to continue...]
“At Gateways, we believe that every Jewish child deserves access to Jewish education and community. Gateways provides high quality special education services, expertise and support to enable students with diverse learning needs to participate meaningfully in Jewish life and learning. Now in our second decade, we serve individuals, families, educators, day and congregational schools, preschools, [click to continue...]
Emily Borses is a 21-year-old aspiring filmmaker based in Los Angeles who is also part of RespectAbility’s Speaking and Training Bureau. Emily’s family is very artsy, especially her dad. When she was growing up, he introduced her to 60’s-era punk rock music like Led Zeppelin, Heart, ZZ Top, and The Foo Fighters. She also developed an [click to continue...]
When I was five years old, I was diagnosed with Retinitis Pigmentosa (RP). The disease runs in my family and causes me to lose my peripheral vision progressively over time. It’s now like looking through a tiny straw. RP also causes me to have night blindness and severe sensitivity to light. Despite knowing about the [click to continue...]
JQ International, a frequent cosponsor of RespectAbility webinars, celebrates the lives of LGBTQ+ Jews and their allies by transforming Jewish communities and ensuring inclusion through education, support, and identity-enriching events. From Shabbat dinners to holiday gatherings to educational panels to inclusion training for institutions, JQ’s community engagement, educational programs and support services promote the healthy integration [click to continue...]
What does resilience mean to you? Depending on where you are in life as well as your responsibilities and challenges, you might define resilience in different ways. Maybe it’s about staying flexible in mind and spirit. Maybe it’s about working through whatever anger or frustrations you hold within so you can find that happiness that [click to continue...]
Ramah is the camping arm of Conservative Judaism. The mission of the Ramah Camping Movement is to create and sustain excellent summer camps and Israel programs that inspire commitment to Jewish life, and develop the next generation of Jewish leaders. At Ramah, thousands of children, teens, and young adults come together each summer in communities [click to continue...]
I was privileged to deliver the following in a “sermon slam” for the Jewish holiday of Shavuot a few years ago. The holiday of Shavuot, literally translated as weeks, is celebrated 7 weeks after Passover, to celebrate the Revelation at Mount Sinai. Tradition teaches that every Jew, past, present, and future, stood together at Sinai [click to continue...]
This perspective is a little different than what we usually publish. One of our talented speakers, Aaron Seglin, has an amazing story to tell, but spoken word and music, more than the written word, are his chosen media. In order to share his story with you, he set down with one of our Fellows, Ben [click to continue...]
The Edlavitch D.C. Jewish Community Center (EDCJCC) has a long history of inclusion and acceptance. Since its initial creation in 1911, the DCJCC welcomed members of the Jewish community from all backgrounds. The building had extensive renovations in 2019 and is now accessible to all who enter its doors. In 2016, the Center was renamed [click to continue...]
